Campus Clips

In a university budget update in December, senior Yale officials reported that more budget-reduction measures will be required to respond to an increased federal tax on endowment income and the prospect of reduced federal reimbursement for research costs. The university has reduced nonsalary spending across the board by 5 percent for 2025–26, imposed a 90-day hiring pause last summer, deferred some building projects, and offered a retirement incentive for some management and professional staff. The report says further reductions will occur over the next two years, and that “several units may need to meet their budget targets by reducing their workforce.” While they hope most personnel reductions will come through attrition, they said that “layoffs may be necessary, but university leaders are working hard to minimize them wherever possible.”

The university will hire an ombudsperson to “serve as a neutral advocate for fair treatment and processes,” President McInnis announced in October. The new position will report directly to the president, operating “under strict confidentiality,” to help “faculty, staff, and G&P students understand their rights and options based on all laws and university policies and procedures.” All the other Ivy schools have a similar position.

Yale’s police union and the university agreed on a new contract on October 15, more than two years after the last contract expired. The Yale Police Benevolent Association had authorized a strike last summer when negotiations stalled, but the strike never took place. The new contract, which includes pay raises and expanded benefits, runs through June 30, 2028.

The state of Connecticut is investing $121 million in quantum technology, Governor Ned Lamont ’80MBA announced at a press conference at Kline Tower in November. The figure includes support for QuantumCT—a nonprofit  collaboration led by Yale and the University of Connecticut—and its quantum incubator in New Haven. 

A pack of dogs—and a number of admiring humans—gathered on the lawn of the Yale Health Center in September to honor Heidi, a six-year-old yellow labrador retriever who has served as Yale’s public safety facility dog since 2020. The occasion? Heidi and her handler, Yale Police officer Rich Simons, were retiring. As described in a YaleNews article in 2021, Heidi’s job was “to be a calming, comforting presence for students, staff, faculty, hospital patients, and the community at large.” Handsome Dan XIX and many other dogs—some in uniform—attended.